Archive of Our Own ^beta

Abe ducks his head into the rec room in the Hills where a bunch of the guys are screwing around with the arcade machines. "Hey, kid," he says, sharp and loud enough to carry over the beeping and gritty explosion noises. "Got a job to do."

Hallelujah scrambles up off the couch, leaving his drink behind. "You got it, bro! What's up?"

He gets out into the hallway and the door closes behind them before Abe answers. "Heading up to Ikebukuro to have a chat with someone." They get in the elevator and Abe thumbs the button for the ground floor before he glances over at Hallelujah with a cocky little smile. "You hungry?"

"Uh," Hallelujah says. "That kind of chat?"

"Always a chance," Abe says. He looks like he's looking forward to it. Like he's hoping it'll go that way.

It's probably one of the things that makes him so successful in the Ashura-Kai, one of the things that's making more and more of the organization defer to his leadership now that Mr. Tayama is gone. It's not just that he doesn't mind the parts that have to get rough, it's that he seems like he's having a good time.

Hallelujah's not quite sure what to say, so he just sort of fidgets in the elevator until they get down to the lobby. He's grateful to Abe for taking him in after Mom died, and he really wants to make him proud, but he's not sure he'll ever be the kind of guy who looks forward to snuffing out somebody for crossing them. Despite what he can't help being. Part of which involves being inconveniently hungry.

"Don't brood, kiddo," Abe says, elbowing him in the side, teasing. "You'll never get a girl's attention looking like that."

"Right, sorry." Hallelujah tries to smile. Abe's always looking after him.

They step out into the glistening pristine glass of the lobby, which doesn't hit him nearly as hard as it did the first time Abe brought him to the Hills, but it's still impressive enough. Twenty-five years since the Ceiling went up, and here they haven't given in to anarchy. Here, everything is still crisp and clean and perfect. The Ashura-Kai have worked hard to keep order. And sometimes somebody doesn't appreciate that, and they have to go have chats like this.

When he was little, Hallelujah was always hungry, even when he was not hungry at the same time, like when Mom had been busy with work and could afford to buy them some of the pork chops the Hunters brought in from aboveground. Hallelujah could eat until he was stuffed full, but it didn't stop the other kind of hungry.

Mom noticed he was still uncomfortable, because she always did try to do her best for him. Hallelujah tried to explain about the second kind of hungry, but wasn't sure if he'd done it right, because it made Mom look worried and sad.

"I'm sorry," she said. "But you need to be strong, Hallelujah. Don't pay attention to that feeling. Don't let it get the better of you."

In the Ikebukuro Underground District, people scramble out of their way. Well, out of Abe's way, honestly, but Hallelujah's with him and everybody knows it. The district is recovering a lot now that the Ashura-Kai are providing protection again—something Abe talked the survivors into, one of the reasons people say he's the best replacement for Mr. Tayama—and it actually looks like somewhere people can live instead of just a lawless demon pit. The lady running the item shop, Michio, greets them politely and doesn't even seem nervous when she asks if Abe is here to review the books.

"Nah," Abe says, brushing the question away. "I ain't worried about that. You always been sharp enough to run a clean shop."

Michio smiles, not exactly friendly but happy to do business. "So what can I do for you today?"

Abe examines his nails. "You know if Akechi's around?"

The smile fades. Probably that means she can guess why they'd want to have a chat with Akechi. Probably that means Akechi's been running his mouth a lot. "Haven't seen him leave," Michio says.

"Works for me," Abe says. "You take care, now."

He walks away from the shop window and Hallelujah trots after him. Behind them, he can hear the rattle of the shutter as Michio closes up shop in a hurry.

Akechi's place is one of the rooms at the south end of the district, the same kind of little ugly square rooms people live in all over Tokyo. The kind Hallelujah lived in too, before Mom died. Before Abe saved him.

Abe doesn't knock, just opens the door and walks in like he owns the place. In a way, he sort of does.

The man in the room scrambles to his feet. "Who the hell are you?" He's big, built like a fighter, already starting to go bald even though his face is unlined. The room smells like his stale anger, like he's been stewing in it for a long time.

"You're behind on your rent," Abe says, cool and relaxed. "Came to see if you had an explanation."

"Rent," Akechi spits. "You assholes don't own Ikebukuro! I don't owe you anything."

Hallelujah winces. This is definitely not going to end well.

"That your final answer?" Abe asks.

"Get the fuck out of here," Akechi says. He takes a step closer, too close, so Abe has to look up to meet his eyes. "Or do you think that kid you brought with you can handle me?"

No, Hallelujah prays. No, no, no. He'll do it if he has to, but he doesn't want to. He'd probably already be out the door if he didn't owe Abe so much.

"What, bring out the big guns for a pissant like you?" Abe reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone. "Girls? Lunch time."

He was hungry when Abe met him, hungry all the time, and then one evening Abe took him aside and pressed something into his hand. "Here, kiddo. Take the edge off."

The thing in Hallelujah's hand was a pill, shiny dark red like fresh blood. "Bro?"

"Take it," Abe said. "You'll feel better. We'll get you the real thing soon, but this'll help for now." And when Hallelujah started to ask a question: "You trust me, don't you?"

And he did.

Lilim and Succubus pretty much just destroy Akechi. It's not remotely fair. Hallelujah has seen them work before, so it's not a surprise, but it's still awful. The first thing they do is drop a Charm spell on him, and then it doesn't matter how strong he is or how hard he could hit in a fair fight, because instead all he's going to do is stand there and take it and wait for more. They take turns. One of them hits him while the other cheers her on, and then they swap. Bones crunch. Blood runs from Akechi's nose. He sways on his feet and eventually falls.

Hallelujah always wants to look away for this part—not because it bothers him but because of the part of him that isn't bothered at all. His heart beats faster and his nerves jangle with the need to move, not away from the trouble but toward it. Does Abe feel like that? Is it something that humans can do too, or is it just his other half that makes him have those urges?

Abe doesn't give away any hints, leaning against the wall and watching like he's bored with the whole thing. Hallelujah tries to pretend he's bored, too, instead of shivery and hungry at the smells of blood and pheromones.

Succubus has to Charm Akechi a second time before it's over. At least that's probably the only moment he's actually suffering. Probably. Hallelujah watches until the two of them are done with the killing and have started to lick the blood off each other's fingers.

"Come on," Lilim says, looking up at him through her lashes, "don't you want to play?"

Hallelujah's pretty sure that's the whole reason he's here, but he looks over at Abe to check anyway. Abe's lip curls and he lifts his chin, a little minimal go ahead gesture.

So Hallelujah takes off his jacket and his shirt, setting them aside by the wall. They're nice clothes, and once things get blood stains on them it's almost impossible to get them clean again. Honestly it would be a good idea to take off his pants, too, but that's a little too personal when Lilim and Succubus already make him feel so awkward and extra-aware of his body a lot of the time.

Like now, when he realizes that Lilim is watching him get undressed. His cheeks go hot. "Cut it out," he says. "You know that's not what I'm doing here."

"But it could be," she singsongs, her wings fluttering in the way that usually means she's being a tease on purpose.

Succubus rescues him, cooing, "You are being a brat," and slipping her gloved fingers into Lilim's mouth. "Let him eat first."

Okay, it's not much of a rescue. Hallelujah sinks to his knees beside the body, ignoring the way Abe chuckles and the way Lilim makes soft little obscene noises around Succubus' fingers. The smell is so strong, this close up. He breathes in deep, exhales again, and all it takes for him to change is to stop holding it back. When he reaches out to pull away the body's clothes, his hands are pale, his nails sharp and inhuman.

You don't ever have to be what your father was, Mom used to say, but Hallelujah isn't sure how true that is when it feels so natural to hook his claws into one of the wounds the girls made and tear it open further, exposing creamy fat and glistening meat. He twists an arm out of the socket and pulls until the flesh gives way and he can lift it to his mouth.

It's the best thing he's ever tasted, every single time. The flesh resists his teeth just enough to be satisfying when he pierces it. The taste of iron on his tongue makes him flush with joy and relief and a hundred other emotions all at once. He bites down hard and tears a long strip of meat off the bone, barely stopping to chew before he swallows it down. It's been too long. It's always been too long. He doesn't need this to live—probably?—but he needs it. He craves it.

Lilim and Succubus are eating too, but nowhere near as much. Whatever their arrangements are with Abe, they must be feeding pretty often. They leave most of this meal—most of this body, most of this person, he needs to not let himself forget what he's doing here—they leave most of it for him, and Hallelujah is grateful with every part of him that's not guilty. That's a lot of parts, right now.

Blood stains his hands a dozen shades of red and brown. Tiny fragments of flesh get stuck under his claws. The fine layer of fat that pads the skin makes his fingers feel slick and oily. And it's still wonderful. Muscle is firm and satisfying between his teeth. Kidneys give more easily, softer flesh with darker flavor. There are other organs, shapes he can't identify as easily, more variations on the theme. There's so much bounty and it's been so long.

But once the worst of the hunger is sated, it's time for the part they probably all want most. "Do the honors?" Succubus asks, poking at the head so it lolls blank-faced toward Hallelujah.

"Yeah. Okay." This part is kind of tough and always messy, but he can do it. Hallelujah slips his fingers into the dead man's mouth and takes a solid grip on the jaw. He presses down on the forehead with his other hand, holding it steady while he pulls the jaw off. With the jaw gone, he can hold the neck down, hook his hand under the upper teeth, and pull the head backward until it comes off the spine. After that there's only a thin layer of soft tissue to pull away before he can snap off the internal shelf-bit of the skull and expose the brain.

If he were really human he'd be sick right now. Instead his mouth floods with saliva. He tilts the head away from him, toward the girls. "You want the first piece?"

"Who raised you to be such a gentleman?" Lilim asks as she dips her fingers into the opening to reach the brain. "It sure wasn't that thug over there."

"Oh, come on," Hallelujah says. "Bro's been really nice to me." He waits until Succubus has gotten her first piece, too, then reaches in himself to pull some free.

The rest of the meal tastes good and makes him feel stronger. But it's the brain that really matters. Abe says the best theory humans have is that neurotransmitters carry the energy demons need. Hallelujah doesn't know if that's true but he knows nothing else in the world makes him feel like this. The flesh is creamy and soft, almost melting on his tongue, and it tingles as he holds it in his mouth. By the time he's swallowing the first mouthful the effect is hitting him, making him feel dizzy and weirdly weightless. Energy thrums through his limbs, lifting him up out of himself.

"Look at you, sweetie," Succubus purrs. "You've been so deprived." She pulls free another piece of the brain and feeds it to him, slick gloved fingers rubbing against his lip as she slips the morsel onto his tongue. "Let us take care of you, mmm?"

Hallelujah tries to agree, but it's hard to make the words come out right when the feeling's just hitting him and besides that she's stroking his tongue. Should that feel this good? It seems like maybe it shouldn't. But it does. He makes a contented noise, and she smiles at him, and it's so nice.

After about forever or maybe fifteen seconds Lilim says, "Here, let me." Succubus lets go of him and Hallelujah opens his mouth, pliant and fuzzy-headed, to let Lilim feed him. It feels so good to be here.

"You stick with me, kid," Abe said after the first time, "and you'll never go hungry again."

The taste of blood still coated the back of Hallelujah's tongue and the horrified feeling he was supposed to have wouldn't come, and when he opened his mouth what came out was, "You're the best, bro."

The brain is gone. The skull is empty. Succubus still has her fingers in Hallelujah's mouth, and Lilim is leaning against his side, and he's definitely not still hungry but he still wants. He squirms, vaguely unsatisfied, trying to get control of this thrumming, needy feeling.

"Hey, kid," Abe says. "C'mere."

"Aw, man," Hallelujah says, but he wobbles his way to his feet anyway and crosses the room to where Abe leans against the wall. You don't tell Abe no. "What's up?"

Abe takes him by the chin and tilts his head up, looking him in the eyes. "Look at you, kiddo. They'll eat you alive if you're not careful."

"That sounds kind of exciting," Hallelujah says, and his cheeks flush hot but it's true. "And—and you're here to keep an eye on me, right?"

Abe laughs. "Maybe you're growing up after all." He takes Hallelujah by the shoulders and spins him around to face the girls again. "You heard the kid. Go for it."

Lilim and Succubus advance on him like Abe's just given an order to attack, bright-eyed, smiling. But they don't cast any Charm spells and they don't throw any punches. Instead they press him back against Abe's chest and Succubus stretches up to kiss him. Her lips are soft, and she smells like ashes and floral perfume, and Hallelujah never thought his first kiss would be with a demon but really he didn't think much about his first kiss at all, and maybe he should have: this is really nice. And it's not like he doesn't know how this goes—he's watched television, watched out of the corner of his eye when Abe gets a freebie from one of the working girls—but he's not really prepared for the way it feels when Succubus licks her way into his mouth, squirming against him so he can feel the crush of her breasts against his chest. He puts a hand carefully on the curve of her waist and she purrs into his mouth.

"Give me a turn," Lilim says plaintively.

Succubus pulls back enough to cock an eyebrow at her skeptically. "You can't wait?"

"No," Lilim says, and reaches up to pull Hallelujah down into kissing range. She's little, and he has to bend over, but that's okay. The ashy part of her scent is the same, but the flowery part is different, though he'd have trouble explaining how. Her tongue flickers against his, teasing and playful, and she makes soft pleasure sounds against his mouth.

He's not sure which of them goes for the buttons of his pants, but they're open, and there's a hand slipping inside them—Succubus'?—to push his boxers out of the way, and they're touching—he's going to—the noise he makes into Lilim's kiss is strangled and desperate and makes her laugh.

"We're really," he says, breathless, shivering as cool clever fingers trace the length of his cock, "we're going to, I mean, this is really happening."

"You've never done any of this before," Succubus says, and she sounds so pleased about it that Hallelujah can't even be all that embarrassed.

"Be gentle, I guess?" he says, and behind him Abe snorts in amusement. "Oh—a-aah, yes. Please." When he looks down it's Lilim's hand wrapped around his cock, stroking slowly. "This is amazing."

Abe's hands slide up his arms, big and warm. "Haven't I always told you? Nothing but the best if you stick with me."

"Yeah," Hallelujah says breathlessly, leaning back into him with a giddy little smile as Lilim and Succubus trade knowing glances. "It's true."

The girls sink to their knees in tandem, wings spread slightly behind them for balance, and that makes it look like they're going to—holy shit, they are, leaning in to taste Hallelujah's cock. Their mouths are warm and wet, exploring with lips and tongues, making little sparks of pleasure jolt through his nerves. A tongue flickers against the underside of the head, right at the spot he pays the most attention to when he's taking care of himself. Hallelujah whimpers, and a soft giggle answers him.

When they stop just exploring and actually take him in, wet soft heat, he swears, trembling all over. Maybe part of it is the meal but he feels so good, dizzy with pleasure, his skin taut and sensitive all over, heat pooling at the base of his cock.

"Yeah, didn't know how good that would feel, did you?" Abe asks, holding on tight to Hallelujah's shoulders, holding him close. He sounds fierce, sounds... proud? and it's good, having his solid warmth there to lean into.

Hallelujah shakes his head, not sure he can get the words out. He had no idea. Everything is so amazing. Lilim has the head of his cock in her mouth and Succubus is licking his balls and he can barely stand it—and then Abe bites down on the nape of his neck, hard, and his back arches helplessly as he sobs out a desperate, barely human noise and comes in Lilim's mouth.

Abe hums against his nape, a low rumble. Hallelujah slumps back against him, gasping for breath, and—oh. That's Abe's dick pressed against his ass, and it's hard. A little rush of heat runs over his skin even though he just came. He squirms a little and Abe's hands tighten on his arms. "Bro?"

"Go roll that futon out," Abe says. The girls get up to comply. Abe's hands drop to the waistband of Hallelujah's pants, pushing them down off his hips. "Now that we've taken the edge off a little, it's time to get serious." He runs his hands over Hallelujah's stomach and chest, pulling him close possessively, and his breath is hot against Hallelujah's neck. He bites down again, sucking hungrily at the skin, and Hallelujah whimpers, shivering against him. Abe's always taken care of him, but he's always treated him like a kid before now, and this is... this is really different.

Lilim and Succubus get the futon rolled out and then Lilim says, "What are you waiting for? Let's play," as she starts to peel off her lingerie...thing.

Hallelujah tips his head back. "Yeah?"

Abe lets go of him, gives him a little shove in that direction. "Go on. Ain't polite to keep a lady waiting."

"Right," Hallelujah says. His head's spinning. In a good way, but still, wow. He kicks his shoes off and pushes his pants down so they slide off the rest of the way, and he'd be self-conscious about getting naked in front of people except that Succubus and Lilim are squirming out of the not-much they were wearing and he can't stop staring at them. He edges around the remains of their meal and goes to join them on the futon.

"How do you want this, boss?" Succubus asks.

"Be nice to the kid," Abe says—still close behind him— "but go ahead and have fun."

"Perfect," Succubus says. She kneels on the futon, running gloved hands up over bare skin and cupping her breasts, watching Hallelujah watch her. "Come here, sweetheart."

Hallelujah kneels on the futon. He can't look away from them and he thinks if he weren't still feeling giddy from feeding that he'd be really nervous right now. "What should I...? I mean, what next?"

Succubus reaches for him. "You got to feel really good just now, right? So now it's your turn to do something nice for me." She shifts into a sitting position, her legs spread wide, and at first he's trying not to stare at her pussy or anything but she gets him by the hair and pulls his head down until he can hardly look anywhere else. Her folds are shiny-wet and dark pink and she smells even more strongly like ashes and sweetness. "I want you to lick, sweetie. I'll show you where the good spot is."

"Yeah," Hallelujah breathes. "Okay." He braces his weight on his elbows and leans in to taste her. For a second he's afraid that this will make him think about hunger again, remind him of that—but it doesn't, either because he's had plenty or because demons don't make him feel it the way humans do. Her fluids taste sharp on his tongue, enough to make his mouth water, but it's not a hunger thing.

Then strong hands close on his hips, lifting them up, coaxing him into a position with his ass in the air. Hallelujah starts to pull up to ask what's going on, but Succubus pushes him back down.

Abe laughs. "Don't worry about this end, kiddo, I'll do all the work." He squeezes Hallelujah's ass, firm and possessive, and wow he is definitely not treating Hallelujah like a kid anymore. He holds Hallelujah kind of...spread open with one hand, and then he's touching Hallelujah's asshole with his fingers slippery and wet.

Hallelujah makes a little involuntary noise, freezing up for a second, and Succubus squirms like she's trying to get his attention back. Right, okay, he can do this. Abe thinks he's ready. He tries to focus, flicking his tongue against the little stiff bud of flesh in the middle of Succubus' folds, and he falters a little bit when Abe pushes a finger into him but he doesn't stop.

"There you go, sweetie," Succubus says, carding her fingers through his hair like she's petting him. "Just keep that up, like that."

He moans against her flesh to try to communicate that he totally will. It's weird and distracting and a little uncomfortable, what Abe's doing to him, and he has to mostly try not to pay attention so that he can keep his rhythm steady. It's good, though, it has to be, or he wouldn't be getting hard again.

When Abe pushes another finger into him, stretching him open further, Hallelujah shudders. "Hey," Abe says, "instead of just watching, why don't you help my boy out?" Hallelujah goes all warm inside. Not just because Lilim helping him out is exciting—although it is—but because Abe is still looking out for him. He rocks his hips back to show that he's grateful.

Then Lilim squirms underneath him and takes his cock in her mouth and he's really grateful. It's a good thing he only really has to pay attention to what he's doing with his mouth, because otherwise he's not sure he'd be coordinated enough at all. Succubus reaches over and does something that makes Lilim croon, which feels wonderful, and Hallelujah moans, which maybe feels good for Succubus, too—he hopes so.

"Knew you'd get along once you gave it a shot," Abe says. He sounds so pleased. He pulls his fingers out. "Now I need you to trust me, and try to stay relaxed."

"Mmmn," Hallelujah agrees. He knows where this is going next and he's a little nervous, but Abe clearly thinks he can handle it and everything is fine.

Abe's cock presses into him and for a second Hallelujah does have to just stop and remind his body to relax. It's big and hot and filling up all the space inside him, and nobody's ever touched him like this.

"That is so hot," Succubus murmurs. "Down on your knees and giving up your virginity for your—"

"You got this, kiddo," Abe says. His hips are pressed up against Hallelujah's ass. He's gotten the whole thing in. "Show me I'm right about you." Succubus laughs, but it's not mean. She's just having fun. They're all having a good time.

Hallelujah bucks his hips to reassure Abe that he can handle this. He still feels good. There's just a lot going on. Then he turns his attention back to licking Succubus' pussy, because she's been really patient with him getting distracted.

Abe gets a good solid grip on his hips, pulls back, then thrusts in deep enough to rock him further into Lilim's mouth. They both make little surprised noises, which is kind of funny, but also just like, yeah, that's intense. A couple more slow strokes like that and he thinks he's starting to get used to having Abe's cock in him. Fucking him. It still feels weird but he's more sure that it's a kind of weird he's okay with. And it's kind of great that Abe would want to, without him even changing back first. Like Abe doesn't mind what he is.

"How you doin', kid?" Abe asks. "Lemme hear how good you feel."

Hallelujah moans, just a little at first but it feels kind of good to let it out, to make noise, so he does it again, again, until he's making little hungry sounds every time Abe pushes in again. He's just feeling so much, Abe's cock and Lilim's mouth and Succubus' hand snarled in his hair, and he likes it but it's overwhelming, too.

After a few minutes he starts to feel like he's getting the hang of this, and after a few more minutes Succubus' thighs start trembling—he looks up, makes a little questioning noise, but she just tightens her grip on his hair and says breathlessly, "Don't stop now, darling," so he doesn't—and just a few seconds after that she's arching her back and crying out, her sweet-sharp fluids flooding his mouth.

"You're such a good boy," she says, pulling him away from her pussy and smiling down at him when he looks up at her. "So sweet."

Hallelujah smiles back, and then Lilim takes his entire cock down her throat and he whimpers, the hot clutch of her throat almost more than he can stand. If it weren't throwing him off so much to have Abe fucking him, he's sure he'd have come already. "Please," he says now that his mouth is free, "please, I want, I..."

"You want to come?" Abe says. "Go for it. We got you. Lemme feel how tight you get around my cock when you get off." He sounds greedy, hungry, this tone of voice that Hallelujah has heard before but never directed at him, and it makes him feel shivery and hot and draws the tension tighter in his lower belly. He's close now, when he lets himself pay attention to how it feels—Lilim's mouth on his cock, yeah, but the slide of Abe's cock in his ass, too, the weird can't-relax friction of it. He lets his head fall, panting, just holding on as he gets worked over and his body shivers with need—

And when he comes it's like Agidyne licking all through his nerves, washing through all the spaces inside him and filling them up with heat and light. His claws tear long gouges in the cover of the futon and he shakes like he's going to fall apart and it's amazing.

Abe hauls him backward, off Lilim, until he's sitting astride Abe's thighs and his own weight pushes him down to take Abe's cock deeper. "That's my boy," Abe murmurs in his ear, voice harsh and almost growling. "You're doing so good for me, just a little more."

"Yeah," Hallelujah gasps, "want to be good for you too, bro, f-fuck—you go so deep."

"That's right, you can take it," Abe says, both arms wrapped around Hallelujah and holding him tight, driving up into him. "My boy, taking it so good." Lilim and Succubus are still messing around with each other but Hallelujah can't really pay much attention—he's shivery and sensitive and every thrust of Abe's cock feels like it's dragging across bare hungry nerves. Abe bites down on the back of his shoulder, sucking hard on the skin as if he wants to be sure it'll leave a mark, and Hallelujah's whining in his throat helplessly, writhing in Abe's lap. He wants to believe that his human side is enjoying this, not just the other side, but it feels so raw and visceral that he's not sure.

When he thinks he's almost at the point where he can't take it anymore, Abe tenses and goes still under him, groaning, cock pulsing in his ass. Hallelujah flushes hot all over. His heart is pounding.

After a minute Abe relaxes, letting Hallelujah go. "Alright," he says, "I think we're about done here." It's the same satisfied tone he has when he's getting up from the game table after a really good winning streak. He slaps Hallelujah's thigh casually. "Up you go, kid."

"Right," Hallelujah says, but actually it turns out his first stop is down, sliding out of Abe's lap and more or less falling onto the futon. He's wobbly everywhere. He keeps wanting to laugh and that's probably not appropriate. Wow, this whole thing. He gets up on unsteady legs to go retrieve his clothes.

Abe sends the girls home while Hallelujah is still fumbling to put his clothes back on. He's such a mess. He's going to be so glad to get back to the Hills with its hot showers.

"You still fucking around?" Abe asks when he's done going through Akechi's stuff for anything that might be worth confiscating.

Hallelujah brushes imaginary dirt off the front of his jacket with his normal-again hands. "I'm ready to go."

"Good. Let's get out of here."

They leave Akechi's room behind—someone will come scavenge it soon enough, even with the state of the body they left in there. There's never enough room for everyone in the underground districts. Michio will open up shop again, and she'll tell someone that the Ashura-Kai came visiting, and someone will go to see what happened. Whoever can get over being squeamish fastest will be able to stake a claim on some private space.

Ikebukuro hasn't changed. Which makes sense, of course it hasn't, they weren't in there all that long. But Hallelujah feels like he's changed, again, like he did the first time that Abe showed him what he could do about the endless hunger. He follows Abe toward the stairs and tries not to let his aches and twinges show in the way he moves, and he thinks about what they've just done and how it's so much more than he was expecting.

Abe takes such good care of him. He's so grateful.